Will there be a second villain in Batman Vs. Superman? The
next Star Trek will be co-written
by virtual unknowns. Read one of the first reviews of the Helix pilot. Could the new Gotham City TV show
feature a surprising character? Plus Orlando Jones says no one's guessed his Sleepy Hollow character's secret. Spoilers now!

Star Trek

The third movie of the Star Trek reboot will reportedly not have Alex Kurtzman writing it, but will have Roberto Orci writing it along with J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, who previously wrote an unproduced movie script based on Paul Guinan and Anina Bennett's graphic novel Boilerplate. [THR]

Star Wars

Label this "Possibly true, possibly a joke": James Blunt (yes, "You're Beautiful"'s James Blunt) has reportedly confirmed that Carrie Fisher will be in Episode VII. Apparently, Blunt might actually know, since he's friends with Fisher and sometimes lives with her when he's recording. On the other hand, he's prone to joking, so this could be another one. [Metro]

Batman Vs. Superman

After Callan Mulvey's name was thrown around as possibly playing a villain in the Man of Steel sequel, it seemed unlikely that he'd be looked at to play Lex Luthor. Now, Batman-On-Film is claiming that there will be two villains in the movie, both of them from Superman's rogue's gallery rather than Batman's. If this is true, the question is whether the two are from the group already rumored – Lex Luthor, Metallo, Doomsday – or another villain. [Batman-On-Film via Comic Book Movie]

Have they cast the not-Lex Luthor villain for Man of Steel 2? Katee Sackhoff is insistent about not …
Read more Read more

Amy Adams responded awesomely to a question about how she'd feel if the sequel had a love triangle with her Lois Lane, Superman, and Wonder Woman:

Advertisement

Advertisement

Am I interested? I don't know. I mean, we'll see. I hope that I can be involved with a woman on screen where we're not in a love triangle. That would be fun. Maybe where we team up together and we work as teammates instead of adversaries.

Amazing Spider-Man 2

B.J. Novak (The Office) is in the sequel, but he's apparently afraid to say his character's name. See if you can figure out who it is based on what he's said:

Advertisement

Advertisement

I'm in a couple of scenes. Yeah, I was never told whether or not I could say. I can say that I work at Oscorp. And I am someone from the comic books, someone from the original. So, yeah, I'm somebody. I wouldn't say I'm pivotal, but I'm not an extra, either.

The Daily Bugle Tumblr's at it again. This time, the marketing site's published a profile on Oscorp, which features a few Easter eggs. The first is the author, Joy Mercado, who is also a comic book character. It also "speaks" with Oscorp CEO Donald Menken, who will be played by Colm Feore in the movie. Finally, there's the hint at Doc Ock at the end. The text of the article is:

Advertisement

Some people have visions of the future. Me?

I went and saw it with my own eyes.

Behind the ridiculously fortified superdoors of OsCorp Industries headquarters the future waits patiently for the rest of us to arrive. Only a privileged few reside there — guardians of the secrets that only time (and intrepid journalists!) will reveal.

Under pressure to quiet growing Wall Street rumors of plans gone awry, OsCorp spokesman Donald Menken gave me a glimpse into that future.

I was only given limited access to this room, and legally I can't discuss what I saw in detail. I can barely describe what I saw now. Had I stepped just one foot deeper, it would have been too overwhelming for me to handle.

Prototypes from the United States Military? CHECK. Alternative energy experiments? CHECK. Stuff I don't understand enough to even describe it correctly? SUPERCHECK.

It's like what my childhood closet would have looked like if all toys were free and unlimited — but OsCorp's toys can save the world…or obliterate it.

So, if the future is already in the warehouse, how do they keep advancing? When money is no object, it means the best facilities filled with the brightest minds in science.

The scientific rumor mill (there is such a thing — I checked) has floated every leading name as a possible contributor. But none is more intriguing than world-renowned nuclear researcher Otto Octavius.

When asked about that rumor, Mr. Menken replied, "I can't confirm or deny any rumors you read on the web. We talk to a number of different scientists every day about our special projects."

The official Twitter account posted this bit of concept art that will be won by a contest winner. [Twitter]

Guardians of the Galaxy

Bradley Cooper said that he became a fan of the comic after agreeing to voice Rocket Raccoon and that they haven't settled on the final voice yet:

Advertisement

Advertisement

Well, I like James a lot and it really was about him and then talking to him about the guy. I wasn't familiar with the comic at all and then I really loved it, and I love that character. He's incredible that character. You know, one thing we debated was he's seen as a cockney accent sometimes. So we talked about whether we'd do that or do this sort of other guy from the city a little bit.

Yeah, we're in the middle of [finalizing the voice].

He also gave his impression of other members of the class, particularly Chris Pratt:

Chris Pratt is unbelievable and Zoe is great, she's always great. Chris Pratt just blew me away. I thought he's just like the perfect guy.

Transformers 4: Age of Extinction

A few bits and pieces seem to be giving a fuller picture of the plot of Transformers 4. The first is this synopsis by Empire magazine:

Advertisement

Earth is scarred by the events of the past three movies, but is moving on after all the giant robots disappeared. Cade Yeager, an inventor, discovers a buried Transformer which sets the stage for the return of the rest of the Transformers.

The second bit is a video from the set in Hong Kong, which has some dialogue from Optimus Prime which indicates that the Autobot leader either dies or thinks he's going to. Here's the translation from Hollywood Hills:

Advertisement

There remains a price on my head, and I risk endangering you if I stay. Cade when you find the remaining stones, mark one as my soul. Defend this family Autobots, as they have you, goodbye, don't forget me.

And finally, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura confirmed what some leaked photos had indicated: there's a redesign of at least Optimus and Bumblebee

Advertisement

I can not disclose the specifics, but you can be sure that the joining of the Dinobots will give the audience new excitement. In addition to Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, the appearance of these classic roles changed, today the world's coolest, most exciting cars will appear in the film, including China's vehicles, whether you are a car enthusiast, you will feast your eyes and be shocked by them.

Selfless

The sci-fi thriller starring Ryan Reynolds has been moved its release date from September 2014 to February 27, 2o15. [Deadline]

Animal Farm

Andy Serkis revealed that his entirely motion-captured take on George Orwell's classic will start filming next year. He also explained how he thinks motion-capture will work for this film:

Advertisement

Advertisement

What we're trying to do is fairly unique. It's going to be entirely performance captured, so rather than photographing real animals and showing them with talking mouths, it will all be generated by the interaction between the actors playing those roles…the physicality and facial expressions of all the animals will come directly from actors' performances.

Gotham

Fox's show about a young James Gordon is apparently looking to cast a ten-year-old Bruce Wayne. Not as a cameo, but possibly as a series regular, according to TV Show Auditions. Here's the description:

Advertisement

A 10-year-old Bruce Wayne is among the roles that are now being cast as series regulars on the upcoming Fox TV series "Gotham" which explores the origin stories of Commissioner James Gordon and the villains that made Gotham City famous. Under development for over a year, the project has now been given a direct-to-series order by the network, which won an intense bidding war for the Warner Bros. Television rights to the show. Shooting on the pilot episode will get underway in March, 2014 and will center on Gotham City PD rookie homicide detective James Gordon who investigates the double murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne.

The Walking Dead

Recent reports from the "Walking Dead Fans/ Stalkers" Facebook page seem to reveal the fate of Baby Judith when the show returns next year. Fans say that filming in Georgia recently had Coleman (Tyreese), Melissa McBride (Carol) and a "set of twins, young looking babies" on set. One of the fans, Mark Rosenthal, said that he thought the twins were there to play Baby Judith. A scene between Carol and Tyreese also brings up the question about whether or not Tyreese was actually informed of Carol's role in the death of his girlfriend, Karen. [International Business Times]

Advertisement

Advertisement

Robert Kirkman confirmed that Carol will be back before the end of the season, "The Sanctuary" will come into play when the show returns, and there will be flashbacks used to delve into the personal lives of the characters. [TV Guide]

Doctor Who

More revealing are these new promo photos, a complete set of which you can find here. They show a wooden (?!) Cyberman, the Doctor waving around a Dalek eyestalk, and the first look at Orla Brady's Tasha Lem, who is reportedly a character from the Doctor's past. Could she be the one that the spoilers say the whole special's plot revolved around? [Radio Times]

Sleepy Hollow

Mark your calendars: The season finale on January 20, 2014 will be TWO hours long. Here's the official description of the two episodes:

Advertisement

Advertisement

In the first hour of the two-hour SLEEPY HOLLOW season finale event, "The Indispensable Man," airing Monday, Jan. 20 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT), Ichabod (Tom Mison) and Abbie (Nicole Beharie) discover a massive secret buried within the pages of George Washington's Bible and unearth the shocking true nature of the founding father's death. Meanwhile, Captain Irving (Orlando Jones) makes a near-impossible decision for the sake of his beloved family that drastically changes his future. Then, in "Bad Blood" (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT), the battle between good and evil comes to an explosive head – sacrifices must be made, worlds collide, loyalties are tested and the town of Sleepy Hollow will never be the same – resulting in a haunting first season finale.

Orlando Jones says that we're going to learn a lot about his character before the end of the season, but he insists that it's nothing that the fans suspect. He said:

I can honestly say everybody is off, very off.

[Fan theories'] emphasis is in the wrong place. Like, you don't know what coven anybody's a part of, really. You just know what coven they say they're a part of.

He also previewed Captain Irving's relationship with Reverend Boland, a Catholic priest with a long history with Irving:

Advertisement

[Boland's] very devoted, and he's helping me through what is going to be an extraordinarily difficult time in Irving's life. It's always weird when you go have a discussion with your reverend that doesn't end with 'Amen.'

Executive producer Ken Olin went on to say that he sees Irving's character as one of "self-preservation," and added:

Not only are Irving's relationships with Crane and Abby really put in jeopardy, but his entire career is put in jeopardy based on trying to protect people that he cares about. . . choices are going to be made that involve potentially huge sacrifices

According to Roberto Orci, the next season might look into Abbie and Jenny's father:

There's definitely a story to be had there and a deep and impactful one for Abbie and Jenny. So it's entirely possibly that we will.

As for this season, answers are coming about Abbie and Jenny's childhood encounter with Moloch, and the answers are going to set up future arcs, according to Alex Kurtzman:

One of the big things we're going to start tackling is what they don't remember about what happened to them in the forest that day. They only remember seeing Moloch and then they blacked out and woke up by the side of the road and then don't remember what happened. So the mystery of what happened to them is something we're going to play out. And that may provide us with some answers for some of the bigger threats that are coming.

Agents of SHIELD

Episode 14 will introduce two recurring characters, both SHIELD agents. The first is "an African-American agent who specializes in combat/weapons." The second will be "a high-level S.H.I.E.L.D. agent/munitions expert who has past ties to both Coulson and Ward." [TV Line]

True Blood

The premier, "Jesus Gonna Be Here," will flashbacktastic. There will be one showing Sookie and Tara at age ten AND one showing Bill, his wife Caroline, and his daughter Sarah in 1862. [E! Online]

Helix

An early review of the pilot makes it sound like Helix really will be as good as we'd hoped, describing it as "terrific, filled with unexpected jumps and jolts and an ever-increasing sense of dread and claustrophobia that at different times call to mind elements of "Alien," "The Thing," "The Andromeda Strain" and even "The Walking Dead."" The review goes on to describe the premise:

Advertisement

Advertisement

"Helix" is all about the increasingly desperate efforts by a team of scientists to stop an outbreak of an especially lethal pathogen that is killing researchers at a remote Arctic laboratory. (Lethal may be an understatement. As one scientist says after seeing what the pathogen does to its victims: "This thing doesn't kill, it annihilates.") The location immediately sets "Helix" apart from just about everything else on television. It's all sleek and high-tech and somewhat claustrophobic on the inside and bright and white and endless on the outside. (It's all the more impressive when you realize that Syfy is shooting this show on a soundstage in Montreal, and that the primary sets are located underground.)

[Barry is] getting to see that sometimes it's better not meeting your heroes, because they're complicated and cranky… and maybe jealous of the way you're looking at their assistant. At the end of the day, Oliver just wants the job done and Barry helps get the job done — and that's sort of the saving grace for him.

Once Upon a Time

It looks like that, at least for the start of the second half of this season, the characters of Rumpelstiltskin and Belle will be in the same world. However, say executive producers Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis, this situation may not be all good:

Advertisement

Horowitz: In the second half of the season, they are going to be in the same world for an extended period of time.

Kitsis: If you're a fan of Rumbelle, the second half of the season will further explore their relationship – in whatever state that is.

They also hinted that Rumpel's going to be calling in favors owed, possibly including helping Charming leave Neverland. [TV Line]

Rebecca Mader's villain role's name is still under wraps, but we know it's one of the best "of all time," not just of all Disney villains. Other hints are that she has her own theme music and that she'll be at odds with Regina. [E! Online]

Revolution

Executive producer Eric Kripke gave this description of the rest of the season:

Advertisement

Advertisement

The second half of the season is part of our group marshaling their forces and pulling everyone together — that includes Monroe's son and Neville — and bringing everyone together against the bad guys. Meanwhile, the bad guys' plan becomes terrifyingly clear as well as the audience getting to know really the big bad of the season, which is the president of the 'United States' — in quotes. All the chess pieces are moving into position for a final confrontation.

We will also meet the female warlord, Duncan, whom Kripke describes as having "a war clan similar to Titus, except she's not completely bird-sh– crazy." Our heroes, who were fighting war-clans at the start of the season, will have to team up with Duncan in an uneasy alliance against the Patriots. [Entertainment Weekly]

Haven

The finale will reveal who the fourth person is who can help open the portal. Its final moments will feature "bad stuff for Nathan," and there will be one or two deaths. [TV Line]